We Shall Be Monsters
A Novel
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
A girl marked for death ventures into the wooded realm of the fairies to rescue her mother in this dark, lyrical fantasy about vengeful witches, beastly fathers, and the stories mothers tell to keep their daughters safe—from the author of Nocturne.
Gemma Cassata lives with her mother in an isolated antiques shop in Michigan, near a seductive patch of woods concealing an enchanted gateway to fairyland. Gemma knows she’s not supposed to go into the woods—her mother, Virginia, has warned her multiple times about the monsters that lurk there—and yet she can’t resist.
Virginia understands her daughter’s defiance. She knows the allure of the woods all too well. Her own mother warned her about the monsters, and Virginia also did not listen—until a witch cursed her true love just days before their child’s birth. So Virginia will do whatever she can to protect her daughter—even if it means stealing Gemma’s memories.
But everything changes when Gemma gets too close to the truth, and the witch takes Virginia . Now it is up to Gemma to venture deep into the mysterious woods to rescue her mother and break the curse.
Told in the alternating viewpoints of Gemma and Virginia, this novel is not only a tale of a girl’s fantastical quest through a darkly magical fairyland but also an exploration of the complex bonds between children and their parents.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Wees (Nocturn) delivers an enchanting, eerie, and lyrical fantasy that blends fact and fairy tale. It alternates perspective between 14-year-old Gemma, growing up above a Michigan antiques shop on the border of deep woods that mysteriously beckon to her, and Gemma's mother, Virginia, who tells Gemma frightening stories of the woods in an attempt to scare her away from them and uses her magic to remove Gemma's memories of experiences she's already had among the trees. Despite her mother's efforts, however, Gemma is continually drawn to the woods, uncovering the magic and secrets lurking within. Virginia too was once drawn to the woods, a recklessness she paid for dearly when a witch cursed her true love, Gemma's father, to transform into a beast. When, spurred by Gemma's incursions into her domain, the witch returns and abducts Virginia, Gemma embarks on a perilous journey to save her mother and lift the curse before her 15th birthday. Wees's rich exploration of parent-child bonds delves into themes of defiance, protection, and the enduring power of love. Evocative prose brings this dark, folkloric world to life and makes it easy to sink into both protagonists' perspectives. Skillfully told and compulsively readable, this is sure to be a hit with fans of atmospheric fantasy.
